


Orange Brandy

by meiqis



Category: NINE PERCENT (Band), 偶像练习生 | Idol Producer (TV)
Genre: Alpha/Alpha, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-24
Updated: 2018-08-24
Packaged: 2019-07-02 02:35:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,421
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15787197
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/meiqis/pseuds/meiqis
Summary: A wedding planner and a company owner have hardly anything in common - except for being top tier alphas bonding to the sound of wedding bells





	Orange Brandy

**Author's Note:**

  * For [zhuzhting](https://archiveofourown.org/users/zhuzhting/gifts).



> I said I'd never write a/b/o but here I am... no one is to be trusted  
> This turned out entirely different to what I had first expected since I had this original idea that was, somehow, more aggressive, instead it sucks so sorry

That certain look of surprise Zhengting usually received was something he, at this point, really was more than used to, ever since his high school days and being near the end of his puberty, the kind of times when usually people would develop their second gender and sweet surprise…  
He clearly remembered some of those days still, how his two best friends had back then figured they were alphas back then and it was funny, the fact that even within the alpha ranks there were distinct classes, the weaker ones that usually were able to produce pheromones and all that jazz but didn’t have an aura too different from betas, up to the strongest ones who could easily subdue whole villages and smaller towns with their presence alone.  
During those days, with Yanchen coming out as just a slightly higher ranked alpha than Ruibin, they had patted his back and told him not to take it to heart, clearly, they had anticipated the worst, because he might have been as tall as them but never had the same kind of domineering presence, too lanky, too feminine, hell, even while he and Yanchen had visited the same ballet classes he had never been as much of an attention attracting beanpole as one half of his best friends, and then he had seen their jaws drop to the ground when his own pheromones had come kicking in and instead of being an omega as they had darned thought, he had been labelled a highest ranked alpha and laughed at their shocked expressions.  
But these two had taken it with ease, eventually, they had patted his shoulder, told him they were proud of him, joked to not try to pick fights with them, and then it had gone on as always except some people couldn’t stand being around him because apparently he was too forceful, and he hadn’t understood until months later what they had meant.  
Mostly it had been as he had started building his own business, awkwardly motivated by his cousin who was more like a sister, growing up next door and a huge fan of weddings back then already, saying how she’d want to wear this dress or that, how she’d want to decorate it, and dear heavens, he had been so thankful for her being an alpha too because he hadn’t been able to stand the thought of Meiqi possibly not being able to endure being around him because of his pheromones that would only scare her off…  
Fast forward to this very moment of standing in a hotel lobby and being faced with a manager who looked as startled as anyone else who had a) heard of him being pretty much the overlord of pheromones thanks to their force and his excelling in controlling him and now were shocked to see that he didn’t look like an overlord at all or b) had seen his pictures before on his website or on wedding blogs or wherever fucking else and thought he must have been a lucky omega based on his looks, being able to come this far when he was supposed to be submissive, only to then be surprised by his dominance that could be felt just by being in the same fricking ballroom as he was.  
After years, all he could do was smile at them as they exchanged greetings, the tremor in the stranger’s hand obvious for being so close to him, an alpha who wasn’t used to this feeling of being subdued but noticing when an A-class was around either way and when to shut his mouth and sometimes Zhengting thought that being a top tier was really making it way too easy because no one usually was able to protest his wanting to rent their locations for yet another wedding and then they usually already knew him and gave him some sort of business discount because as wedding planner he was pretty much a regular already.  
It was the same all over again, a few nice words, tilting his head, and he had the ballroom booked for the date he desired and half an hour to spare because Xinchun had scheduled an hour for this meeting and up to this point Zhengting wasn’t sure whether his assistant still underestimated him even after months or whether the poor boy did it intentionally to have an excuse to grant his boss a - in his opinion - well deserved break.  
Either way, he actually didn’t mind all that much, because it usually ended with him getting a triple caramel macchiato with extra whipped cream or some other diabetes inducing drink and walking around the city for a while, taking calls from panicking brides-to-be or looking at new bridal wear in one of his usual shops if they were close by, looking for new locations if they weren’t.  
Neither of which he was actually in the mood for so he just sipped his coffee, went wherever his feet took him, strolling around the streets, and in his thoughts, ever so often again, he was hung up on the topic, alphas and betas and omegas and looking that way or not, partly he could understand it, there was a reason people were surprised that he was an alpha and of that rank, even he was aware that he didn't look it, he was, as dumb as it sounded, too beautiful to be perceived as one of the few top tier alphas in the city, but he assumed it was justified, alphas were handsome, sure, domineering and strong, he was lithe, had been called a fairy, anyone seeing only his face might mistake him as lower.  
It was the principle of nature, he had thought about that too, those that didn't have strength needed other ways to get their food, defend their territory, like female birds that attracted males with their looks rather than fighting, like butterflies that matched their colors to their surroundings to stay hidden, beauty was a weapon and in a world, in a society like theirs, omegas, the weakest link, the abused ones, misused ones, they tended to be more beautiful, they were pretty, lithe, dolls come to life, he would easily admit he'd rather fit in with those, he was beautiful, slender, he wasn't handsome, nobody expected him to have the kind of strength he possessed, and yet he didn't only want to rely on physical strength, couldn't, because even then he'd lose fights, and that part he was relieved about, that it wasn't just about physique, it was about control, pheromones, was about claiming whole rooms.  
If he compared himself to Ruibin or Yanchen… Those two surely were handsome, no one would call them pretty or beautiful or a doll, they were manly, tall, well-built, they were like the picture of Lin Yanjun that was plastered on a billboard a few houses down, a giant electronic advertisement for the corporate owner and whatever thing he had done now, an alpha like Zhengting but nobody would question that man, with a handsome face, fierce eyes, hell, he even had been on the men's health magazine cover for whatever reason Zhengting couldn't fathom and yet understood too well, because that man, he was the ideal of any alpha, had taken over his father's company at such a young age, had expanded it, a billionaire by the time he had just been twenty and still on the rise, as much as he disliked it, Lin Yanjun really was an ideal for any alpha, and if just in the right circles, when around the right people, one would be able to get all the right information, and considering he was a wedding planner and brides were talkative, for sure he had gotten heaps of such, rumors and tales, a man who domineered entire buildings by entering them, a man who didn't control his pheromones because he was ferocious, and just by himself, Zhengting silently thought that maybe that man didn't even know to control them, had never needed to learn it, because in a cruel and cold business world it was too important to subdue-  
His phone interrupted his own thoughts, realization hitting him that he was gnawing on the straw since the coffee was gone, that people kept a distance to him because he had let loose on his own pheromones, even though it was just the slightest bit, it was already too much for most other people, but now it was too late anyways so he could only take the call and asked, “Xinchun?” 

He hadn’t ever thought it would be a meeting to take place, or at least not under these circumstances nor that soon, had thought it would be enough to get just acquainted with the manager of the private garden to - successfully so - rent it for a wedding, a garden with beautiful flowers, maybe always blooming, it made him wonder how they had managed to get it so colorful after winter had just ended but it wasn’t his place to ask, he was only there to fulfill all of a bride’s wishes, despite knowing who it belonged to, after a bit of research, that very man whose face was plastered all across the billboards and now that it was time, he surely hadn’t needed to look even.  
“Ziyi, look at Mr Ling’s notes and get me the information on how much they discussed already,” a low voice called, sultry, and for anyone else it might have been shiver inducing, he could see it on Wenjun’s face even, how he seemed to tense ever so slightly, for a beta he was quite well trained to sustain pheromones and scents because of working next to Zhengting for so long but it hit him once again, quite so, that not alphas were as considerate, tried to hold it back, reminded him again, he was a black sheep amongst alphas and to some even a disgrace.  
“Mr Lin,” the wedding planner replied while putting on his best smile, while turning around to look at the businessman who was, admittedly even more handsome than on all those magazine covers and billboards and what not, and more up the space, his aura filling up the garden with ease, making the alphas shut up, the betas tremble, if he listened closely enough, he was quite sure he could even hear some people rushing off, omegas, for sure. “I hadn’t expected you to show up as well. If I had known, I would have prepared on different terms.”  
The hand he had held out, it was disregarded with but a gaze, had Zhengting’s smile tense for a moment while he waited for a reaction, fought the urge to just hiss at the older who didn’t show even the most basic of manners by taking his hand, another day, different circumstances, he might have done it, would’ve clawed at the so influential man but he had always thought that way, that it was his responsibility to, even though he was stronger, look out for the weaker ones around him, and surely he didn’t want to draw everyone around into a fight for dominance.  
Their conversation died for a moment as another man handed that alpha the notebook he had previously seen in the slightly aged manager’s hands, Ziyi, as he assumed, and with a short nod towards the trained decorateur, showing Wenjun that he was allowed to leave whenever he wanted, that he wouldn’t need to stick around if it was too pressuring, and under the pretense of looking around, the blonde actually did disappear quite soon, not much to the older’s surprise.  
“The rumors about you are right, you really don’t look like an alpha at all,” his opposite suddenly pointed out, taking the entrepreneur by surprise and yet not, it was what he could read in gazes ever so often but not something people usually liked to point out as forward as this. “Quite too beautiful to be like me.”  
“Excuse me?” He was still trying to stay nice, kept his smile up with force while watching how a tanned hand with a pen started to cross out things on the notes that belonged to someone else, making him feel a tad irritated yet startled, obviously he would hear about the CEO, always in the press, always in too many people’s mouth, but that that man knew him, of his rank, without any need to check on it, it had him a bit uncomfortable, suspicious.  
“I like to keep track of my rivals, puppy, and your name is quite a dominant one on the lists,” the reply soon came, eyes burning bright as they focused on him, making Zhengting feel intimidated not because of the force but because he couldn’t read them, couldn’t pinpoint whether it was intrigue or hostility or just a small threat, it was confusing him.  
The lists, though, he wasn’t surprised anymore that the other checked them out, especially after mentioning wanting to keep track of his rivals, and they were an easy way too, for alphas to find out who was of a similar rank, who was a possible rival, and for omegas to find out who was a threat to them, not in a physical way, but merely because too many find it uncomfortable to be around oppressing forces.  
He seemed to have dazed off for a moment when he shouldn’t have, not because Yanjun seemed to take it as a trait of winning but more of a threat, Zhengting could only assume so, not many would dare to trail off in their minds while around him and he so easily was able to, he was a threat and yet he wasn’t, their business too different but their city the same and if they had been in a different time, in a different setting, they surely would’ve already fought for the crown to be claimed. “You don’t seem to be quite that strong though so maybe I was worried for nothing…”  
“Excuse me?” The repetition of his own words seemed to not be fazing the older much but the sudden release of pheromones, dozens of seals of self-control broken and torn apart for all of a moment, just for long enough to have the opposite alpha realize without pressuring the employees too much, it had that man widen his eyes lightly as if astonished by the sudden attack that wasn’t quite an attack after all.  
“Worried for nothing…” The older mumbled to himself before suddenly handing over the notebook with a business card on top, a bit too much intention behind that charming smile that was unexpected and more cunning than nice, like a wolf dressed in sheep’s clothes, “You see, I’m quite attached to this garden, puppy. So if you want to do anything in it, you’ll need to call me and ask about it or I’m afraid you’ll need a new location. Call me borrowing it to you a favor because we’re the same.”  
With a frown he watched how the tanned turned around and left already again, checking things on his phone while it was left to his assistant, or whatever Ziyi was, to bow and say his greetings, promising the older man that Yanjun would call him soon about the flowers, declaring what a pleasure it was, and then he was also gone to rush after his boss, leaving a stunned manager and a scowling Zhengting behind, who already dreaded looking down at the list he held in his hands. 

If he had at first thought it was tiring to have to deal with Lin Yanjun, not only that that idiotic face was still plastered all over the city, worse, he did have to see it on a nearly weekly routine too, whenever that guy had to complain about how his garden was treated while at the same time pointing out that his workload was too big so they can’t just meet up for lunch and of course those complaints were too grand to be discussed over the phone and slowly but surely Zhengting realized why that guy was winning in business all the time - he drove people mad.  
He was on the verge of going crazy, it was Sunday night and he had just wrapped up his seventh wedding in three days, successfully, as he would add in, but brides were brides and they were either the most relaxed people on earth or furies each in their own way, one would bawl her eyes for hours and ruin all the makeup and styling, another would get cold feet and demand hours of getting calmed down, then there was the perfectionist and with those he could usually just bat his lashes and ask whether they didn’t trust him, which would, honestly, be ironical when considering how much he was paid, and all in all he loved weddings but they were exhausting and the businessman sure wasn’t a help, flaunting pheromones around the secluded room he had just entered to carelessly throw his things into a corner, despite a little voice reminding him they were Gucci, and taking a seat. “What is it this time? Did we step onto your petunias? Crashed one of your pineapples? Did we plan the stage one inch too far on the right?”  
His tone was strained, he was aware of that, but it was Sunday and late and while he usually was able to sleep in on Mondays, he just felt tired and craved a long hour of drowning in his bathtub and hundreds of bubbles with a sheet mask on and all that was ditched in favor of a dinner he hadn’t asked for just to not risk the location for that wedding, something he had to swallow down with wine first and only then it occurred to him that it was odd, that his glass was already filled as if his intentions had been revealed because he was quite sure he had refused to drink the previous times.  
“You know I don’t have pineapples in my garden,” the older voiced gently, softly, a tad nicer than usual too while resting a finely chiseled chin on a perfectly slender hand and Zhengting wanted to slam his head against a wall for thinking like this, considering that he might be going into rut sometime soon to even feel attracted to this annoying man right in front of him at this moment. “I wanted to ask you out earlier but your assistant said you’re on a tight schedule on weekends. I thought you’d deserve this as celebration for wrapping up your weddings well.”  
“Yeah, you, you-” Wait… His eyes widened lightly as the realization of the words that had just been said kicked in, frowning as he watched the older man for some while more while trying to wrap his mind about what he had just heard and needed to listen to because it sounded so odd. “So this… It isn’t about your garden again?” If one could punch their own voice, he wanted to do it right now for sounding so weak and timid from the strain of working and exhaustion overriding him.  
“It is about you. People like us don’t usually get a lot of rewards for leading companies and working a lot so I thought you’d deserve it,” Yanjun answered smoothly, with that piercing gaze still properly working, burning into his head and making him feel uncomfortable, not sure whether it was the kind of gaze that lead to courting or a fight and neither was he sure about whether he even wanted to know. “I hope you don’t mind that I asked your secretary about your preferences in food so I’d be able to order already. It wouldn’t be nice to have you waiting for too long for your food after some tedious days.”  
Honestly, he was still considering what would be considered an appropriate way to react to such words that were way unlike what he was used to hearing, no one but his sister had usually cared about treating him to dinner after an exhausting time like that, to cheer him up, celebrate his successfully wrapping up, and it made him feel touched, but there was no way to react when two waiters came into the room with several plates to be put down, indeed, they starred all of his favorites, surprising him, because it was more than just one dish and he wondered whether it was intentional that it had been sized down as if to make sure he would be able to eat it all with ease, it made him feel all the more suspicious.  
Silently he waited until they were left alone again, passing the time by sipping on his glass while he watched how the two waiters went around at times but mostly his eyes were focused on his opposite, taking in the sight slowly, now that he took his time examining him, he really didn’t look like he was dressed for business, sure, there was still a button up covering that delic- golden skin, but the tie and the suit jacket where missing, he was also quite sure there weren’t suit pants but jeans worn beneath the table but as funny as it might be, he wasn’t willing to lean down to look beneath the table cloth now, all he did instead was sigh as he lowered his glass, “It’s not that I don’t appreciate the effort, Yanjun, but just what are you trying to do here?”  
There was a break, not one Zhengting could nor desired to read so, instead he grabbed his chopsticks to pick at the first dish, placing some on a plate to hand the other as if it was the most natural thing to do, except it quite so wasn’t, he figured, because alphas tended to pick their meals themselves or to serve those they wanted to court and it gave him the sudden urge to slam the plate against a wall, but before he even could do so, another hand already grabbed it and lowered it down.  
“I’m still not too sure myself,” Yanjun finally answered as he started to eat, as if he hadn’t just been handed the plate as if courted, it was surprising, quite so, the wedding planner would’ve rather so assumed the other alpha to be more stubborn about his position on top, especially considering he had made that standing quite obvious during their first encounter, “But I do enjoy that you’re not holding back around me. You’re not afraid of affronting me and you don’t tense up because of… that,” - which probably referred to the pheromones for he waved his hand around the air - “And you’re too pretty to get tired of your face so it’s pleasant to look at.”  
If put like that, it suddenly seemed so reasonable, he figured as he chewed on a piece of meat, still eyeing the older with some suspicion but, in the end, it probably was better to make the best of the night, one way or another the other might actually be right, it was easier to be around each other, someone who had no urge to back down, someone who’d easily call them out, not intimidated, not submitting, a challenge even, and just that much was somehow making Yanjun’s sympathy score rise a bit.  
“If you only want to look at my face, get some other way to do it instead of calling me out,” Zhengting still refused, less bite to his words, though, than there would’ve been upon arrival, reassured that it wasn’t about work again, delighted because there was food to indulge in, maybe willing to forgive that much because, while it wasn’t a bathtub, at least it seemed to be more of a relaxing night than he had first anticipated. “And next time you want to take me out, you should just say it like that and not use work as an excuse to. I don’t like it and it doesn’t suit you.”  
“Then would you be willing to have lunch with me tomorrow?” Was the immediate reaction to it, startling him once more, more so, the piece of meat he received onto his plate that either was part of courting, again, or just to repay the favor earlier, and it just made it harder for him to analyze the situation that seemed so easy and yet not all, a situation that could be easily read into on a different pairing, one that didn’t include two of the highest tiers sitting in the same secluded restaurant room.  
“Brunch,” he answered without hesitation while looking up, assessing the older for a moment, before he added, “I’ll text you the time and location tomorrow.”

Dinner had lead to brunch, brunch had lead to a coffee break, a coffee break had lead to another dinner which had lead to lunch, resulted in Yanjun visiting his place for an evening drink, and way too fast Zhengting had found himself swirling down a spiral of confusion, interest, attraction, and horror, all alike, accompanied by the dread of an approaching wedding that was due in just a few hours and might as well lead to the end of it all because there was no more business to talk and no more of an excuse to meet up.  
It was a thought he didn’t want to linger on and he had successfully managed to push it to a far, far behind corner of his mind while he had still been busy organizing things, asking Wenjun how the stage setup went along, watching over chairs being arranged in the garden and flowers and silk had been hung up, the little overgrown arch that held the altar being cleaned by gardeners to rid it of fallen leaves, he had needed to calm the bride in her panic about everything being perfect, which, at least, was the good kind of panic, laced with excitement and the feeling of a teenage girl’s first date, and now he stood inside the building, watching the ceremony take place from the first floor’s glass wall while desperately trying to push away thoughts about his stupid and naive crush on a man he shouldn’t be crushing on.  
He managed only for so long, feeling a warm hand placed in his neck, pinching his neck bones so softly it could only count as some sort of massage with its gentle rubbing, it made him wonder just how spaced out he must have been to entirely miss out on Yanjun’s scent, engulfing him, now that he took note of it, the lingering warmth of orange and with that sweet spice of cinnamon and some fire resembling slightly heated brandy, it was easy to feel lulled in by that alone, not to mention the shameless abuse of his soft spot, anyone’s soft spot, considering what an important the neck and throat area was for about anyone.  
“You look distressed, puppy,” that gentle voice called out to him but all he could do was drop his head, give in to the shivers running down his spine, the ease that spread throughout his body, all caused by that simple touch and the scent he was forced to inhale, all too tempting, all too soothing, all this and all that, all it shouldn’t be and all he couldn’t refuse.  
“I thought I told you not to call me that way,” he finally managed to refute, wanting to swat away on the hand placed on his neck only to have his own caught in time, warm fingers lacing themselves around his wrist before moving down, digits sliding between his only to lock them down, keep his hand in place while locking his other arm down with an elbow resting on his shoulder, and he wasn’t sure whether to indulge in that embrace or hate it, making him feel helpless for a moment, tense, he wasn’t able to relax even though that hand in his neck still had him forced into relaxation.  
As seemed to be normal for them at this point, there was some silence to break their talking, a time that Yanjun spent courting him, he knew it was courting at this point, knew by the way that scent of oranges and spices was lingering to his skin after every meeting, or date, he considered it was more just to call their encounters dates by now, a scent he rubbed off every evening with force to replace with his more favored scent of lavender, clean and fresh and neutral, not belonging to another person.  
Time kept passing silently while they watched the wedding taking place beneath and ahead of them, Zhengting so easily able to predict the words, call out what part of the ceremony they were in currently, eyes fixed on the scene to take it in, look for any mistakes, anything to distract him, anything that would prevent him from letting his eyes fall close and giving in to the older, until it was time to break the serenity again, “You arranged it well. I was averse to the idea of lending my garden away for the wedding at first but now I think you did it quite neatly. You made it look more beautiful.”  
“Wenjun did,” he muttered silently, maybe he had overlooked it, watched that every detail fit perfectly, but he didn’t want to claim it his work, not when the younger had put so much effort into creating the perfect flower arrangements for their florist to copy, into having ribbons look perfect for their seamstress to make a dozen more, into getting the perfect measurements for the wooden plane for the bride to walk on and finding the perfect chairs and-  
“Zhengting,” he was suddenly pulled out of his thoughts, with a tad of surprise realizing his hand had been freed only for the the older to cup his cheek, make his head turn, have him face that burning gaze, the little frown, those perfectly plush lips his eyes darted down to and it might not have gone by as unnoticed as he would have hoped, “Don’t think about others while you are with me…”  
Words faded out, whether it had been Yanjun’s intent or because he was distracted, he wasn’t quite sure, but one thing he was sure of was that these very plush lips were pressed against his, warm and soft and perfectly smooth, not moving at first until giving a little push, a push that was needed for him to react to it, give in to the kiss and step closer to the older, give in to his desire and curiosity about what that mouth would feel taste like, what the kiss would be like, gentle or demanding or slow or sensual or just outright perfect because it already did feel perfect, better than he would have ever thought.  
It was becoming too greedy too soon, tongues meeting and brushing against each other, weeks of suppressed desire and the lasting fight for dominance, was hands tugging each other closer and teeth digging into lips, grazing along tongues, was looking for the next piece of furniture to lean against, edge of an table digging into his thighs as he leaned against it and their kiss broke with the lack of breath.  
If any possible, Yanjun’s scent around him had become stronger and he was too distracted to check whether he had lost control, whether his scent had taken over, was sticking to the older as the older’s did to him, he didn’t dare, couldn’t care, not when eyes burning their way into his as if it would enable the other to read his thoughts, figure what was going on in his mind, a hand easing his side, caressing it and pulling him closer again while his own were tugging on that finely woven cotton button-up right in front of him, as he belatedly realized and forgot right then again, because it didn’t matter when another kiss was right to come up again.  
Except it didn’t, never would, as he realized by freezing in place, feeling that thumb tracing over his carotid slowly, up and down, up and down, it felt like his blood was set on fire in that very spot but it wasn’t the kind of fire he liked, it wasn’t warming and loving, it was burning bright and painful and scalding his insides and yet it was icy cold and freezing, made him stand like a statue before he forced his fingers to let go of a shirt that wasn’t his to instead push against a chest further than his.  
“Zhengting…?” The businessman asked in confusion, not refusing that he was pushed back and had to let go but quite startled by the cold gaze he must’ve worn, there was no word, no explanation, no comment on his own action as he made his way past the owner of the building and left, shot Xinchun a message that Wenjun was to take over that wedding while he’d head for the other one scheduled on this day and if his secretary caught on to his feelings as he usually did, even when it was just text messages, he didn’t comment on it and just did as instructed.

It wasn’t until some nights later that he allowed all those thoughts to come back to him, while seated between his best friends, and it wasn’t even that he wanted them to come back, rather is that they were forced to haunt him all over again by the words and questions of the other two sitting around that small table that held all their drinks, a place that was supposed to be cozy on a warm summer night but suddenly seemed to be cold enough to send shivers down his spine with the words that were asked.  
“That Lin Yanjun, lately he’s in an even worse mood than usually,” Ruibin pointed out and Zhengting shouldn’t be surprised that it was coming up, they were active in a similar field, worse, they were business partners even as he remembered with a dread, and it was enough of a realization to have him tense up ever so lightly but not enough to be taken note of just yet. “I thought it would be easier since he’s been more relaxed lately but he makes my life even harder now… He’s too ferocious for his age…”  
For a moment he was sure he would be safe, that it would just be Ruibin’s usual complaining about his work, followed by Yanchen complaining about the cooks in his restaurants not living up to standard, followed by him showing off the pictures of wedding cakes one of the bakeries owned by the culinary friend of his had conjured, and then they would dive into fun and entertaining anecdotes about their lives until they were piss drunk and ready to leave.  
But life, as he had come to realize, didn’t pass quite as neatly organized as his weddings did, there was no proper planning, no careful execution, there was just one bomb dropped after another and, in that case, right into his face by analyzing eyes meeting his face, “Now that you bring him up, he also asked about you when having dinner at my place recently. Something about having heard I’m acquainted with you and wanting to relay a message. Maybe I should have done that?”  
That, he figured, was a good cue to down his drink all at once despite more than half of the glass having been filled still, burning in his throat but not the least helpful in drowning out his thoughts. “You shouldn’t have,” he answered simply, he didn’t want no messages relayed by his friend, didn’t want to look at a chat he had deleted, didn’t want to be called by a number he had blocked only to then find out he was called by the assistant and while he had thought to himself more often than once that Ziyi was quite a pleasant partner in conversation, he had blocked that number too and decided to let more of his phone calls pass through Xinchun now, just to make sure it wasn’t Yanjun again.  
“Did something happen between you? Zeren said-” Yanchen started but was stopped by a glare, it wasn’t like him, that much Zhengting knew, to use his force to shut up his friends, he was the opposite of that, he was too unusual for an alpha, he had been told more often than not and he usually saw it as a strength, that he didn’t use his force to his advantage, that he didn’t make people submit but tried to coax them into things, that he paid attention to his surroundings to not suppress anyone, and in the end it had been Zeren to point out the good in it, compared him to a certain kind of hyenas, unique in the varsity of wild animals because they didn’t eat first and leave leftovers to the older and younger and weaker, they offered food to those of the pack that needed it most because they could always hunt more, and Zhengting, the younger had said back then, was like these hyenas, was someone who looked out for others but that didn’t mean he was less powerful, on the opposite, it made him look more powerful because he managed to achieve what he wanted without enforcing it.  
Back then it had warmed his heart and made him feel at ease, were words he liked to think of at times when he felt bad, when he felt that maybe he didn’t deserve his rank because he wasn’t firm enough, didn’t force his way through things, was too gentle, an alpha that didn’t look nor act like an alpha but still managed to keep his spot on top for odd reasons.  
Yet, even when he had been driven by insecurities and lack of confidence, there had been one thing he had never done, namely submitting to someone, he wanted to say it was because of his confidence, but the actual reason was way more disappointing, he had admitted to himself with time, he was too prideful and, worse than that, he was afraid, the pillar he was standing on was a wobbly one, people who didn’t put faith into him, who said he wasn’t that powerful because he usually tended to hold back, because he didn’t want to encourage violence in any way, and he knew, he was too aware of it, that once he would submit to someone, anyone, this pillar would come crumbling down and was never to be built again.  
It was for that reason he avoided Yanjun wherever possible, locked him out of that room that was his life while locking himself in a prison of social standings and normalities, of expectation and despair, a prison he didn’t want to be in but that was like a maze that kept him trapped, it was because Yanjun, someone who was weaker but stronger than him, who was the same but also not the same, was someone who had the ability to make him submit, to scare him, and between fight and flight, between going up against his own shortcomings and trying to bite back, he would much rather choose flight because freeze would mean he was still standing in front of that man he dreaded too much.  
“I guess I shouldn’t have done that then…” Yanchen muttered, audible only to Ruibin who paid attention while Zhengting could only talk about getting them new drinks, heading to the bar instead of waving over the waiter because there, at least, he was able to order some shots while waiting for the cocktails to be finished without having to bear with his two friends’ worried gazes.  
In the end, it proved to be a smart move, barely past his second shot burning down his throat as he swallowed in when a familiar scent of oranges and spices and brandy washed over him, not the kind that would come from the bar, it wasn’t to make people intoxicated but weigh them down, wrap them in, and he could only lower his gaze, watching in the mirror of the bottle shelves how a familiar dark haired man with beautiful golden skin made his way from the elevator over to their table, with some bit of confusion, trying to find the familiar faces while most people around ducked their heads, all alphas, because that was the rule, and while Yanjun was out of reach, too far away, he placed too much money on the counter and made his dash to the elevator.  
If his name was called, it was a second before the doors closed, too far away, and he could lean against the metallic wall behind with relief, because he hadn’t been caught, because he had escaped, and he wouldn’t even be able to refuse being called a coward because he realized he was just that, he was supposed to be top tier, unrivaled except for by a handful, and instead of standing his ground he was running away from a man who had claimed his heart merely because he gave too much about expectations and reality.  
It took him a few breaths before he was able to write Yanchen to take care of his jacket and hold onto it for him for the time being, all while feeling a weight drop off his shoulder when realizing he had been smart, had only taken along his phone and money, keys not needed with pinpads and his wallet at home. At least there was one less thing to worry about.

If there was one thing he was suddenly more aware of than ever before, it were the earrings, small or big, longer and shorter, sometimes they weren’t dangling around the lobes but placed higher, locked into one of those additional piercings he wore too, earrings that looked so simple but carried more of a pregnant meaning, a meaning that was so simple and yet not at all, a symbol for something he craved for but was never able to have because he himself was too stubborn and had been so for weeks.  
He assumed he should be thankful, at least, for neither Yanchen nor Ruibin to ever bring up Yanjun again, if anything, he guessed, they blocked the older off as well, refused to talk to him after the last time he has so fantastically made his escape and had them realize, to some extent, the extent of the situation and his wanting to avoid the businessman. It was bad enough he had to see that face everywhere, unable to forget about the man he loved, and at this point he was quite sure he did love him, and unable to just take off and go on a vacation because any kind of holiday he wanted to take, he’d need to plan it ahead at least one year prior to have the days off and even then, that he already knew, the planning and problems never stopped, after all, the real life didn’t go by as well planned as a wedding.  
A bit too late he realized he was still staring at the earrings in front of him, all a perfect match, every single pair of them, paled with gold or encircled by steel, smaller and bigger to fit all budgets, or most of them, because this was still a rather pricey mall and not some place for just anyone.  
“Did you take a liking to one of them, Sir? Just recently we received these sets of rubies and citrines and-” With a shake of his head he cut the saleslady off, showing her a little smile as if to make up for his somewhat rude way of ending her sentence by force.  
“No, there… The one I’d look for, if I had to, you don’t carry,” he said softly as he looked at the display again, ignoring the confused gaze of the young woman who checked the expensive jewelry quickly only to come to the realization that the only pairing they indeed didn’t offer was a pair of rubies, and for a moment, he was sure, he could see horror on her face as if only now realizing what that meant.  
Before she could get hung up on that, at least while he was still around, on the idea of an alpha with another alpha, a pairing that was too unlikely, so unlikely they didn’t even carry the earrings that proved when someone was taken, one earring for each half of the relationship, all one of a kind so couples weren’t mistaken and a more dominant sign of possession than a simple mark, he distracted her with a different topic entirely. “I heard you carry a new collection for brides I’d like to look at. You have it in store yet?”  
And if that threw off the young woman even more, she was relieved of her occupation quite quick when another woman jumped in, smile on his lips more genuine as he watched how his usual adviser approached him and greeted him and shooed the apparently only recently employed girl off to take over and advise him on everything he wanted to know, taking up at least an hour of her time and it might be disappointing, considering he didn’t plan to buy anything, except he was prone to come back always again with a new bride wanting jewelry fitting her dress. Probably he earned them more profit than they would have on their own.  
It wasn’t until he left over an hour later, when he passed by the earrings again and threw a last lingering gaze, that he made a decision to himself while pulling out his phone.  
Maybe he wasn’t able to submit but at least he was able to explain, he didn’t want to be a coward to end a relationship that had never even started without any other word, it was what he owed to Yanjun, as he realized now, and maybe it also was a good way to ask for closure, because yearning for something he couldn’t have, that wasn’t something he wanted to do when he could just break it apart and end it all.

There was a certain sense of wanting to run and come closer all at once, now that he stood in front of a house he had seen in magazines, praising the exquisite taste in interior design and garden arrangement, except he had never been here himself, once it had been his place, and all other times it had been outside, restaurants, coffeeshops, now he had to wonder why it was like that, why the older had never wanted to show him as if it carried a secret it surely didn’t, but maybe because it would’ve been too domestic, one step too far ahead.  
Now that he was getting closer, he realized another thing, was faced with that scent clinging to everything, lingering around, nothing he could shut out after leaving his car for good, nothing he could prevent from making his skin tingle from head to toe, like a buzz within his veins, luring him in and warming him up, reminding him of what he had once been told.  
“You’ll feel it,” his best friend has said, “when you smell them, it’s like coming home except your home isn’t a place but a person. It’s not a bed you crawl into to cover yourself with blankets, it’s arms holding you tight and making you feel safe. It’s looking into their eyes and feeling drunk while you’re sober, as if your whole word is moving like the sea but your standing firm on your own two feet at the same time. It’s a scent you want to drink up and drown into while at the same time it makes you feel like a bird soaring up.” And he had to wonder whether he had needed to feel distant before he was able to come to this realization first, as if it was a funny twist of fate, a goddess twisting yarn and making knots he was supposed to stumble about only to have the fall make him realize he was indeed tangled up in the thread of his life already since for too long to notice.  
A deep breath, that was what he needed, shutting out that scent for a moment as he reached to ring the doorbell only to find a sticky note attached next to it, a few simple words, calling out to him, telling him to walk through the garden, grinning when he noticed what was scribbled beneath, that anyone else might as well screw off because there would be no reaction in first place, quite the domineering personality that was supposed to own the house and most of the city’s businesses in his clutches.  
Carefully he made his way around, following the path paved out between greens and flowers, to the backside of the house, towards a pond illuminated by swimming LED balls, glowing in a soft white, one of the few lights around, as he noticed when turning his head, seeing but a few candles lit on the terrace roofed by the upper floor, sitting on the ground and the dining table while a smaller one had been set up next to the Hollywood swing, covered by a chilling bowl holding a bottle of champagne, two glasses, and a frame sitting on the cushioned metal next to it, still scrolling on his phone to yet notice him.  
“You’re more romantic than I would have expected, Yanjun,” he said instead of a greeting, watching how that dark haired head snapped up, eyes widening with the whites more prominent on golden skin darkened by the night, filled with surprise and relief, as if there had been some remaining uncertainty, about whether he would show up indeed or not, and for a brief moment it made him wonder, consider that maybe he hadn’t been the only one anxious about this meeting, his shaking hands hidden in the pockets of his loose trousers.  
“Was Ziyi’s idea,” the older replied honestly, getting up only to hesitate, it didn’t seem to fit him, didn’t fit that prime example of an alpha that had been running after him for what might have been a good three months now, three months of getting ignored and hopes getting crashed, three months that had passed and now had him consider whether he hadn’t been too cruel, dragging it out for too long, longer than he should, longer than Yanjun could have held out without also getting insecure and shaken on his feet, mutual pining and waiting and feeling insecure and where it was normal for him, these waves of insecurity and wavering, he was quite sure it was nothing the CEO had ever before experienced in his life. “I didn’t think you’d show up still…”  
With his assumptions proven right, he felt a bit more secure in his steps that took him over, not waiting for an invitation before he settled on the swing too, grabbing for one of those pillows to pull against his chest and hug before he’d find himself doing something dumb or rushed or both. “I was parking two streets away for a while… Had to think about what to say to you but I couldn’t make up my mind well.”  
As he was handed a glass of champagne, he was relieved the tremor of his hand had subsided that much to go by unnoticed, but maybe it was just because of the scent that felt like a bonfire at a chilly spring night, warm and comforting, something he had been longing for for longer than he had thought, but maybe seeing women find their happiness each and every day had made him oblivious to his own happiness, had made him forget that he should also one day yearn for a love as fulfilling but seeing others find it, it had always been enough for him, and that he accompanied the women more often than the men, it had made it easier to disregard his heart, because relating to a woman was so much harder than to someone who was like him.  
In the end, though, the only one who was like him, that still was Yanjun, an alpha that had their teeth bared and kept others down each in their own way, sure, there were others like them, but none of them was their age, all older, there shouldn’t be two of their decade and yet there they were, played by fate, as he would joke.  
“Your friends…” The older started, after he had settled too, turned to the sight as if to always keep an eye on him, watch over him to not run away, when, honestly, he didn’t even want to, he wanted to enjoy it for a bit longer, this kind of domesticity, before he’d need to drop this little snow globe of happiness because it couldn’t possibly work out, not when they were that similar, not when relationships were based on one person submitting and he wasn’t the kind to ever submit to anyone, not as long as he could still bare his teeth and keep standing on his wobbly and crumbling pillar. “On that evening you ran from me, they told me a bit more about you.”  
Unwillingly, with his glass half raised to his lips, Zhengting halted only to star a light frown, that wasn’t something he had been told about, neither Yanchen nor Ruibin had told him that they had actually talked to Yanjun, talked about him to Yanjun, and his gaze might have been maybe too much of a cue for words continued to spill, “I didn’t see it before in you because you have this aura about you, like a butterfly that wouldn’t stop fluttering its wings no matter how strong the wind or a proud tigress not willing to go down or-”  
“A hyena,” he interrupted silently, lips against the edge of his glass before he took a sip, giving Yanjun a short look before looking straight and at the expanse of the garden again, now that he thought about it, it seemed a bit unrealistic to have a garden so green while not too far away from the city centre, grounds so great, but maybe with enough money anything could be achieved after all, “One of my friends says I’m like that certain kind of hyena whose name I’m never able to remember.”  
“A hyena,” Yanjun agreed, a tint of a grin on his lips if what he could perceive from his tone was right, “I did never consider that a hyena like you might also have its weaknesses and insecurities. I’m sorry for not realizing earlier.”  
“No. If you apologize, you belittle it.” He sighed, tilting his head back and over the edge of the swing’s backrest, looking up at a bland and white ceiling, only partly interrupted by built-in lamps that weren’t turned on at the moment, giving their atmosphere more of a romantic feeling, a kind of intimacy that had him drunk faster than the champagne in his hands. “It’s natural you never thought about it since you’re… Well, public says you’re perfect. I don’t think you ever had to feel insecure.”  
“I didn’t.” The reply was nearly shameless and if it was coming from anyone but this very man, he would’ve been scowling already, disappointed with the amount of arrogance laced through these words but now he could only understand it, it seemed natural, self-explanatory. “But I should have considered it regardless. And I made my decision regarding us.”  
Words, they had a certain power upon themselves, could ask for different reactions, but the only one that was drawn from Zhengting was a confused and curious gaze, tilting his head towards the older who only seemed to look more handsome with the little bit of orange light flickering across his features, making his skin look like liquid and smoldering gold.  
“I’ll submit to you.” Four easy words, so easily said, so securely, as if it was but another business deal sealed, as if all those hours he had spent dwelling on his own shortcomings, on his reluctance to submit, to give in, to lose his standing, as if they were but a joke, a waste of time, and he wondered whether he was supposed to feel upset or relieved, yet he merely found himself feeling nothing just yet, as if those words hadn’t quite settled in so far.  
Without thinking about it, he downed the glass of champagne, sliding down like silk, motioning for the bottle to get himself another glass full of, a third, until there was the slightest buzz in his head that had him thinking properly now, all under the carefully examining gaze of the older, frowning in worry at the rushed consumption of his surely way too expensive drink and only past the fourth bottle he felt like he was able to form coherent sentences again.  
“I think this is a good time to kiss me, Yanjun,” he finally pointed out, tilting his head to watch his neighbor on the swing again, to take in his features while observing the approach, felt a warm hand heavy on his waist, not his neck, not his shoulder, it made him feel guilty for feeling relieved and distracted right the next moment when being engulfed by the soothing scent of oranges and cinnamon and brandy and when feeling soft and plush lips against his all over again.

The gaze he received, eyes darting towards the shining red rubies dangling down his ear with each piece probably worth more than a whole city apartment, he could easily read it, the jokes lingering on their tongues, about how he must have gotten himself quite the pretty partner, how it was for an alpha to submit to another one, that he might not be just that high in rank after all if he so easily became another alpha’s mistress - to word it nicely, and most of the times people would just hold back, except this wasn’t most of the people, this was dozens of higher ranked alphas coming together over businesses he wasn’t part of.  
In such a surrounding, Ruibin and Yanjun, the very reason he was around in first place, were his only support, and while his boyfriend had darted off somewhere else again, his best friend next to him seemed awfully oblivious to the gazes of his business partners, that old man had already eyed up his friend as if to assess whether they were sharing the pair of shining red stones when, surely, they weren’t.  
“I’ll go get myself another drink,” said softly, pushing himself away from the table to leave his empty glass behind, adding with a bit more bite than he had originally intended, “You know, I’m not that comfortable without dresses to surround me.”  
For a moment, he indulged in the sight of eyes nearly popping out of that bloated face before he actually took off, not without missing Ruibin’s amusement, but he didn’t get quite as far as he had originally thought, not with a lovely scent of oranges swamping over him, only to be followed by him spotting that familiar golden neck he loved so much, still showing faint traces of his bites and kisses beneath the collar, with the twin piece of his earring dangling down one ear.  
It took him but a few steps to get closer, to walk over and bury his teeth in warm flesh again, eliciting a groan from the older and feeling an arm wrap around him only to slide down and squeeze at his thighs, too aware that the insides were still covered in hickeys he didn’t dare show off quite as much as his love, too insecure still, too dependent on society’s opinion of him, and Yanjun so obediently, although sometimes begrudgingly, obeyed, leaving his marks only where they could still be covered up, reassured by the expensive reds neither of them ever dared take off.  
“Puppy,” the older grunted, warningly, hurling him around only to have Zhengting pull at his tie and pull him closer, well aware that his teeth had left shining marks around the neck bones of the businessman, observed with a grin as he locked their lips together in a kiss, a kiss that was inappropriate, not fit for a surrounding like this, where it was all stocks and trades and prices, yet that anyone would protest though, not when that meant affronting the most influential stockholder of most their companies.  
It took some moments for them to part again, licking lips and gazes set ablaze, little smiles and gentle touches of one pulling a thin waist and another arranging a tie he had messed up, followed by the wedding planner battling his lashes with a bit of a pout on his lips. “People kept asking who I submitted to to be owned by an alpha so I thought I’d show them simply…”  
His muttered words were replied to with a small roll of the eyes, would’ve maybe drawn more of a protest if not for his tilting his head, shamelessly exploiting the weaknesses of his lover, waiting until there was resignation and a sense of giving up so he could lean in to press another quick kiss to his lips, right after adding, “I’ll get myself another drink. Want something too?”  
“You,” was the shameless reply, coming along with a squeeze of his ass that had him growling lowly, a reminder to not overdo it, a reminder that was only regarded with a knowing gaze and a little grin, a reminder that was executed with a slap to a well built chest and had Yanjun let go of him finally, settling with a more reasonable question, “I’ll get what you get, puppy.”  
“Don’t call me that,” Zhengting huffed, tired of having to repeat himself but knowing that he’ll still get called that way nevertheless, it was something he hadn’t managed to get the other to do just yet when anything else would be so obediently followed, even though he was sure Yanjun would say there was one exception, one exception that involved them losing their clothes and screaming names, behind locked doors and all on their own, without anyone to see.

**Author's Note:**

> At the end of it, I feel like I've lost a bit too much touch on the abo theme but I'm really not too good with that topic in the end, I guess  
> Also, I thought to myself to end it after that scene in the Hollywood swing but then it might not have been as much of a well explained ending so just treat that final scene at that business party as a bonus? I guess? 
> 
> Anyways, reach me on [twitter](https://twitter.com/zhengjunist) or send me your thoughts on [curiouscat](https://curiouscat.me/dadting)


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